Musical instrument pad



Dec. 2, 194i. E. SANDER 2,264,591

MUSICAL INSTRUMENT PAD Filed Feb. 28, 1941 INVENTOR.

BY mumiM/m,

Patented Dec. 2, y

MUSICAL INSTRUMENT PAD Eugene Sander, Elkhart, Ind., assignor to H. & A. Selmer, Inc., Elkhart, Ind., a corporation of Indiana Application February 28, 1941, Serial No. 381,063

7 Claims.

This invention relates to musical instrument pads, and more particularly to valve pads or gaskets for use on musical instruments of the woodwind type, of which the saxophone, clarinet, ilute, oboe, and bassoon are examples.

The pads which are now in common use are formed from a layer of felt backed by a layer of paper or cardboard and covered by a layer of kidskin or bladder skin which is folded around the marginal edges of the felt and paper and adhesively secured to the back face of the paper. These pads are expensive to manufacture, require heat to seat them on the instruments, and tend to absorb sound. Attempts have been made to develop pads which will overcome these objections, as by using pads of rubber molded to shape. etc., but these have been objectionable for various reasons.

The primary object of the instant invention is to provide a pad of this character which overcomes the deficiencies of previous pads, and which imparts improved playing properties to an instrument.

A further object is to provide a pad of this character which will provide an improved seal at the valves of an instrument.

A further object is to provide a pad of this character constructed to become somewhat of a reflector for vibrations and thereby give greater volume of sound when an instrument on which it is used is played or blown, -but which will not increase the noise of the mechanical operation of the valve closure per se which is commonly referred to as pad slap.

A further object is to provide a pad of this character which need not be heated to crease it for proper seating in association with a cooperating valve part. m

A further object is to provide a pad of this character which is of laminated construction and can be cut to size from a sheet of laminated material.

A further object is to provide a pad of this character which gives quicker tone response to valve operation, which separates the tones during operation of an instrument, and which imparts improved and increased clarity of tone in playing of an instrument.

A further object is to provide a novel, simple, and inexpensive, method of making a pad of this character. l

A further object is to provide a pad of this character which is simple to manufacture and which is inexpensive.

Other objects will be apparent from the description, drawing, and appended claims.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a side view of a saxophone, with parts of the saxophone illustrated by dotted lines in outline only to simplify the drawing.

Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1 and illustrating a valve in open position.

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 2, and illustrating a valve in closed position.

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3 but illustrating a diierent construction of valve with which my improved pad may be used.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a valve pad adapted for use with a valve illustrated in Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a valve pad adapted for use with the valve construction illustrated in Figs. 3 and 2.

Fig. 7 is a transverse sectional view of the valve pad illustrated in Fig. 5.

Fig. 8 is a transverse sectional view of the valve pad illustrated in Fig. 6.

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary face view of a sheet of laminated material from which valve pads of various sizes may `be cut as illustrated therein.

In the drawing, parts of the saxophone I0 are `illustrated diagrammatically only and in dotted lines for the purpose of simplication of the drawing. It will be understood, however, that the saxophone comprises the usual tubular body, including the stack II, the bell I2, the mouth pipe I3, and the mouth piece I4, together with the usual valves for the various tone holes and octave vents in the tubular body.

The various tone holes of the instrument may be provided with valves in any desired type. In Figs. 2 and 3, I have illustrated the same as of the construction covered by my Patent No. 2,227,- 230, dated December 31, 1940. In this construction, the tone hole is outlined by an annular metal member I5, projecting perpendicularly outwardly from stack II. An annular member I6 ts around the ring I5 and is of substantially L shape in cross section, being provided with an outwardly directed flange Il spaced from ring I5. Annular member I5 and flange I'I of annular member I 6 cooperate to form an annular groove adapted 'to receive an annular gasket or pad I8, Whose outer portion projects from said groove. A valve plate I9, which may have an annular projection 2D at its inner face as shown in Fig. 3, is adapted to seat on gasket I8, and is Vmounted upon an arm 2I pivoted at 22 to a suitor gasket of the present invention and referring` to Figs. 5 to 9, inclusive, for this gpuljposegbothannular pad I8 for use in the instrument valve illustrated in Figs. 2 and :3, vanddisc4fpaclf2t6,for use in the instrument valve il'lustratedinFig. '4 are of identical construction except for their respective shapes. Each ofsthese gasketsor pads has a laminated body, as best illustratedjn Figs.

'7 and 8. Referring first to Fig. 7, vthe -lamifnated pad body comprises'abase-layerfformed of paper orcardboard. The next layeryl of the basket is formed from a soft 'leather or .otherfsoft material having at, least .assmall-measlure vof resilience. Alayer 132 ofggurn rubber or other material havingfa-veryhigh degreeiofgresilience issuperirnpcsed uponlayer 3|. The-out er or'face layer v33=is formed of -kdskin,.or:like material. The various layers are cementedto- ,getherby theuse'of a eXible-cement, of which 4one example is a latex-cement. The `-primary characteristics required of this cement-.farethat ,it be iiexible kand substantially filon-hardening @so as to avoid interference .-Withsthe ,properties of compressibility andy resilience f possessed4 kbythe 'various layers ofthe pad. l

lit-will be'understood that the character `ofthe Ivvarious layers as above I described f. is -illustrative .only andnotlimiting. Thus, for-,example,',while a soft sheepskin leather ispreferable v-for .layer 4.3|, felt, calfskin or othersoft leather, `:cloth in the order of gli of an inch"thick,.-as -forfexample theclcth used formens overcoats, andother materials may also be `usedzfor layer 3|. -The f characteristics .which the` material of A.which -lay'- er.3| lis formed should providea certain v small degree of resilienceand .theproperty of dampeningfclosure or mechanicalnoises. l

The layer 32 :is preferably'madeof -,pure -gu-m rubber, .soft black rubber, sponge rubber,-;oranyr other materialwhichis Very softpand has.a-very high degree'of resilience, i. e.V ai quckmeturn from compressed .to normal position. .Thisflayeras- .sists-inavoidingpad slap .by Avirtue .of its soft- Vness and. compressibility, ybut -does nottend to absorb or dampen the ytoneoryib-rations of.the

. instrument to. any appreciable extent, .butrather .maybe said .to act somewhat as afreflectorof ysuch tones and vibrations.

The lalyer-35 ispreferably formed ,frornkid-r" skin. However, other materialswhich imaybe k.used mtherefor sare bladder skin vprovided .with a thin. feltbacking, rubber impregnatedcloth, such as that material commercially called .Pliofilmf and .thin sheets of synthetic material,.such1as xa vinyl. The primary requirementsof .thislayer .arethat it shall be able to take a .,crease, vthat it ,shallbe resilient withv a slow A`comeback from compressed to .normal position, that `it .shall be ,.airftight, .and vthat. it shallbemoisture ,resistant nations throughout the full extent to the faces thereof. For purposes of simplicity, ease, and cheapness of manufacture, large sheets of the respective layers are coated with thin' uniform lms of the cement, and are then pressed together to obtain continuous adhesion of the faces thereof to provide a large laminated sheet 34, as illustrated in Fig. 9. The Agaskets or pads are .then cutfrom this sheet, and may also be Acoated at their cut edges Withlacquer, or other flexible sealing or coating compound. Hence, by

--making the laminated sheets 34 of large size, -it ispossib-le to obtain a large number of gaskets orpads of different sizes by merely cutting them "from the sheet i3d.' This simple process of forming Va -laminated -sheet and cutting individual elements therefrom has the obvious advantages offsimp'licity'and cheapness, and avoids the steps of separately forming individual elements and then-assembling the same as is now practiced in the manufacture of Vconventional pads.`

The ,primaryk .purposefof Y'the paperor cardboard Y layer illustrated in Fig. .'7 iste `.provide `a .back whichV will .readily .take cement. required to secure the l,gasketor ,pad `to the partohthe n. instrument y.vvhichdsto ,carry they same. .Alsofethe paper may-servefas a shim .toxproperly position the v.pad .relative .to .its .mounting member. .The .paper plays. no otherappreciable.function gintthe pad,.and .may be eliminatedentirelyif .desired,`

.as illustrated .in Fig 8. The only requirement in the eventpapzer 3D .is-eliminatedis'that .the material of .whichlayer 3| is .formed shallibe .suchas to be readilygluedfto amounting `member.

inasmuch Vas the .laminations are .formed lof soft material, the edges thereof A.are raw and severed, and the pad edges may @be ,at least vpartly exposed when the pad is mounted onthe instrument; it is possible lthat ,saidedges when VVVformed of the material specified, may'be frayed,

`split orroughened in ',handling. `Hence, it may be desired to protect the edges of thepad "This can be accomplished by applying a"layer v35 of .lacquer 'or jother suitable sealing. or.,coating compound thereto, as illustratedin Fig. `8. Anannular` gasket may vhave a layer 35 kof lacquerapplied to both the inner and the outer perpheries ofthe pad. y

Agasket or`pad ofthe character and construction above `described has manyadvantages over .pads heretofore` ldevelopedand used 'for musical instruments. The ,principal advantage .of this type of pad is Athat it imparts,improved'playing properties to a Woodwind instrument on which it .is used.k The playing properties of; an instrument depend in large measure onthe resulting characteristics-of the'valve pad. Thusgthe airgsealing properties of a pad Yare very important in amusical instrument. @Thisnewpad provides ain-uch 'betterair seal atfthe valve than does any conventional type of gasket; and almost `completely eliminates air leakage through the body o'ftlie Vpad itself.

In this connection,: note thatthe high degree of resilience `and quick return fromfcomlpression of the gum rubberlayen'coupled with the imposition of `a 4thin 5layer' of i' sheepskin rin direct4 face contact uponithewgumrubber, insu-res this improved air seal. l Alsofthe use of` this ,type

tto at least the. same. extent .that kidskin is mois- .ture resistant. -V

.It will be understood Athatthe .Various ylami- .nations of the material `above .described must' .each `,be adhesively secured to .adjacent .lamiof gasketupon an instrument-.also increases-the Aplaying volume `of thatinstrumentlhegouter or face and intermediate layers of ytl're'fpad-l-iave very littleporosityas vcomparedwith@the con- -ventional type. of pad which employsa feltbody,

.7.5 and hence` the new pad has .somewhat theproperties of a sound or vibration reiiector. At the same time, the layers 3| and 32 impart to the pad the property of absorbing mechanical noises and valve slaps sounds incident to valve operation. In fact, the maintaining of mechanical valve operating noises at a minimum, while increasing the playing volume of the instrument, is one of the outstanding advantages of the above-described pad construction. Additionally, the playing of instruments provided with my new pad also discloses that the pad gives the instrument a quicker response to valve operation. This quick response separates the successive tones of the instrument responsive to succesive valve operations much more clearly and distinctly than is true with instruments provided with conventional pads. This tone separation thus clearly improves the clarity or playing of the instrument. Another important advantage of the instant pad is that it need not be heated to crease the same for the purpose of seating it with respect to the valve part bearing thereagainst. The conventional type of gasket pad requires heating in order to seat the pad, and this is particularly objectionable in cases where an instrument must be supplied with new pads for replacement purposes. This new pad also has a superior resistance to water and moisture as compared to conventional pads, which, among other advantages, permits an instrument provided with the pad to maintain its regulation for a long period by eliminating the swelling which often necessitates realignment of the playing mechanism.

I claim:

l. A valve pad for woodwind instruments comprising an outer layer of kidskin, an intermediate layer of soft gum rubber, and an inner layer of soft sheep skin leather, said layers being superimposed and adhesively secured together throughout their full extent by a iiexible nonhardening cement.

2. A valve pad for woodwind instruments comprising a paper back, a layer of soft leather superimposed on said back, a layer of soft rubber superimposed on said leather, and a layer of kidskin superimposed on said rubber, said layers being secured together in face contacting engagement by a flexible non-hardening cement.

3. A valve pad for woodwind instruments comprising a paper back, a layer of soft leather superimposed on said back, a layer of soft rubber superimposed on said leather, a layer of kidskin superimposed on said rubber, said layers being secured together by a flexible cement, and the marginal edge of said pad being bound by a layer of exible sealing compound.

4. A valve pad for woodwind instruments comprising a laminated body cut to desired size and shape, said body comprising a thin flexible moisture resistant face layer, a soft highly resilient intermediate layer having relatively low sound absorbing properties, and a soft resilient inner layer of a material having relatively high sound absorbing properties, and a thin film of nonhardening cement interposed between adjacent' layers to adhere said layers in full face engagement.

5. A valve pad for woodwind instruments comprising a laminated body cut to desired size and shape, said body comprising a base layer of compressible material, a soft intermediate layer of material having greater resilience than the material of said base layer, and an outer layer of material characterized by low porosity`,`flexibility, moisture resistance, `and a thickness less than said intermediate layer, and a thin film of flexible cement interposed between adjacent layers to secure said layers in superimposed relation throughout their full area.

6. A valve pad for woodwind instruments comprising a laminated body cut to desired size and shape, said body comprising an outer lamination of thin flexible moisture resistant sheet material, an intermediate lamination of a solid material characterized by a high degree of compressibility and resilience, and a yielding inner lamination, and a thin film of flexible cement between laminations uniting said laminations in full face engagement, said outer and intermediate laminations having low degrees of porosity and sound absorption and said inner lamination having a comparatively higher degree of porosity and mechanical noise absorption.

7. A laminated valve pad for woodwind instruments comprising an outer lamination of thin nexible material of the class including kidskin, bladder skin, rubber impregnated fabric, and flexible synthetics such as vinyl, an intermediate layer of resilient material of the class including soft gum rubber, soft black rubber, soft synthetic rubber and sponge rubber, and an inner layer of soft material characterized by a porosity and compressibility greater than said outer lamination and of the class including sheepskin leather, salfskin, felt, and thick fabric, said laminations being exibly adhered in face contacting engagement through their full extent.

EUGENE SANDER. 

